Gaza's Hamas rulers seize contraband painkillers

Gaza City, Jun 26: Gaza's Hamas rulers have confiscated and destroyed more than 2 million tablets of a painkiller popular with the local residents who say it alleviates the pain of their daily lives in

Gaza City, Jun 26: Gaza's Hamas rulers have confiscated and destroyed more than 2 million tablets of a painkiller popular with the local residents who say it alleviates the pain of their daily lives in the impoverished Palestinian territory.

The heist was part of a Hamas police operation targeting contraband drugs, including cocaine and hashish, but also alcohol, which is banned by the Islamist group.

The painkiller, Tramadol, is a controlled substance in the Gaza Strip and can only be obtained with a prescription.

Police showed off the booty at a news conference on Tuesday, estimating the drugs' street value at $6 million.

After the news conference, police dumped the pills in a hospital incinerator, and emptied out bottles of alcohol in the hospital garden.